What is the In-N-Out "Board" Station and Why is it so Hard?

At In-N-Out Burger, the kitchen is divided into very strict stations. While cooking the meat on the Grill (Level 6) gets all the glory, the station directly behind it is widely considered the hardest job in the entire building: The Board (Level 5).

The Board is the station where the burgers are actually built and wrapped. The person working the Board dictates the pace of the entire kitchen. If the Board person is slow, the Grill cook’s meat burns. Here is why the Board is the ultimate test of speed.

The Setup

• The Board person stands at a stainless steel table facing the Grill cook.
• The Grill cook places the toasted buns onto the table.
• It is the Board person’s job to dress the bottoms of those buns perfectly. They apply the Secret Spread, the lettuce, the tomatoes, the pickles, and the raw onions.
• The Grill cook then takes the cooked meat patties and places them directly onto the dressed buns.

The Wrapping Speed

Once the meat hits the bun, the Board person has to wrap the burger in the iconic wax paper.

This is where the speed requirement becomes insane. A top-tier Board person can dress, wrap, and bag a burger in less than 5 seconds.

• They use a specific tuck-and-fold method with the wax paper that leaves exactly half of the burger exposed so the customer can see the ingredients.
• They must memorize which wrapped burger is which. If a customer ordered a “Double-Double Animal Style” and a “Hamburger with no onions,” the Board person must wrap them identically but place them in the box or bag in the exact order requested by the receipt so the customer isn’t confused.

The Sink or Swim Mentality

The Board person is the dam holding back the river. The Grill cook will not stop cooking meat. If the Board person gets overwhelmed and can’t dress the buns fast enough, the Grill cook will literally yell “Board!” as a warning.

You must be ambidextrous, capable of grabbing lettuce with one hand while pumping spread with the other. It is a highly stressful, chaotic ballet, but passing your Board certification is the proudest moment of an In-N-Out Associate’s career.